Crisis Response

The success of BVSD students sometimes requires more than our schools and teachers are able to provide during the day, and this is where we step in. In times of crisis or emergency we are agile and strategic in our response, finding where we can best support the needs of the Boulder Valley community. 

Marshall Fire

Over 900 students and 100 educators in the Boulder Valley School District were displaced by the devastating Marshall Fire on December 30, 2021.

Students and educators impacted by the fire found themselves facing the financial impacts and trauma of losing their homes, being displaced, losing their belongings, and seeing their community forever changed.

The Pandemic

When the COVID-19 pandemic caused schools to close on March 13, 2020, education as we knew it was flipped upside down.

Many families rely on our schools for much more than learning. When schools closed, these students immediately needed nutritious food at home and internet and devices to access remote learning. As students returned to school, supporting supplemental instruction to help students catch up on learning became a priority as well.

Mental Health

• Funded the hire of four mental health advocates in BVSD schools to help students deal with the trauma of displacement
• Boulder schools deploy trauma response teams to counsel kids after Marshall Fire
• IOE funding expands mental health support for BVSD students and staff

Financial Assistance

• Community liaisons help distribute $50,000 to families in need, including youth bus passes, mindfulness books, and gift cards 
• $500 personal checks and gift cards to 96 displaced staff members in the Boulder Valley School District
• 900 “Comfort Kits” distributed to displaced BVSD students with gift cards, blankets, art supplies, letters of support and more
• Transportation stipends provided to families displaced by the fire who have increased costs to get their children to school

Academic Needs

• Funded repair and cleaning of musical instruments donated by the community 
• Backpacks full of school supplies distributed to over 600 BVSD students at 22 schools who lost their homes

Food Security

• Supported emergency food distribution of nearly 2 million meals through BVSD Food Services
• Delivered groceries to 450 high needs families
• Distributed grocery gift cards to families 

The Digital Divide

• Provided 1,500 families with internet access through BVSD IT
• Supported the distribution of 6,000 chromebooks
• Deployed 450 hotspots to families in need of more reliable service

Supplemental Instruction

• Targeted tutoring for 3rd-8th grade students
• ACT/SAT preparatory courses for high school juniors
• Funding for all BVSD high school students needing to retake failed or incomplete coursework
• Additional instruction, technology and curriculum to keep students engaged and on grade level

Emergency Child Care

• Eliminated child care debt for 53 BVSD families in financial need
• Funded supervised care before and after 2021 summer learning

School Supplies

• Acquired and distributed 3,000 backpacks filled with school supplies
• Purchased thousands of books and collected thousands more books for families